Vocational-technical schooling and occupational matching in Thailand: differences between men and women

Abstract

Using data from Thailand's National Labor Force Survey, this paper provides estimates of the proportion of men and women who complete a vocational-technical education at the secondary or post-secondary level and obtain employment in a related field. The results show that completing a vocational education and working in a related occupation offers a benefit to women but not to men, after controlling for the interaction between years of work experience and matched occupations. These findings must be clarified with data that allow for narrower occupational matching. Nevertheless, the research offers some confirmation of the importance of vocational-technical schooling in national workforce development strategies.

Keywords:

• vocational-technical education
• comparative and international education
• gender

Notes

1. Data are calculated from UNESCO and OECD data available at http://www.unesco.org and http://www.oecd.org. For a fuller explanation of the trends in vocational education enrolments see Hawley and Paek (2005) and Hawley (2005).